Investigating the genomic landscape of novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) to identify non-synonymous mutations for use in diagnosis and drug design

Dynamic expedition of leading mutations in SARS-CoV-2 spike glycoproteins

The continuous evolution of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), which caused the recent pandemic, has generated countless new variants with varying fitness. Mutations of the spike glycoprotein play a particularly vital role in shaping its evolutionary trajectory, as they have the capability to alter its infectivity and antigenicity. We present a time-resolved statistical method, Dynamic Expedition of Leading Mutations (deLemus), to analyze the evolutionary dynamics of the SARS-CoV-2 spike glycoprotein. The proposed L -index of the deLemus method is effective in quantifying the mutation strength of each amino acid site and outlining evolutionarily significant sites, allowing the comprehensive characterization of the evolutionary mutation pattern of the spike glycoprotein.

In-Silico genomic landscape characterization and evolution of SARS- CoV- 2 variants isolated in India shows significant drift with high frequency of mutations

In-silico studies on SARS-CoV-2 genome are considered important to identify the significant pattern of variations and its possible effects on the structural and functional characteristics of the virus. The current study determined such genetic variations and their possible impact among SARS-CoV-2 variants isolated in India. A total of 546 SARS-CoV-2 genomic sequences (India) were retrieved from the gene bank (NCBI) and subjected to alignment against the Wuhan variant (NC_045512.2), the corresponding amino acid changes were analyzed using NCBI Protein-BLAST. These 546 variants revealed 841 mutations; most of these were non-synonymous 464/841 (55.1%), there was no identical variant compared to the original strain. All genes; coding and non-coding showed nucleotide changes, most of the structural genes showed frequent nonsynonymous mutations. The most affected genes were ORF1a/b followed by the S gene which showed 515/841 (61.2%) and 120/841 (14.3%) mutations, respectively. The most frequent non-synonymous mutation 486/546 (89.01%) occurred in the S gene (structural gene) at position 23,403 where A changed to G leading to the replacement of aspartic acid by glycine in position (D614G). Interestingly, four variants also showed deletion. The variants MT800923 and MT800925 showed 12 consecutive nucleotide deletion in position 21982–21993 resulting in 4 consecutive amino acid deletions that were leucine, glycine, valine, and tyrosine in positions 141, 142, 143, and 144 respectively. The present study exhibited a higher mutations rate per variant compared to other studies carried out in India.

Hotspot Mutations in SARS-CoV-2

Since its emergence in Wuhan, China, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) has spread very rapidly around the world, resulting in a global pandemic. Though the vaccination process has started, the number of COVID-affected patients is still quite large. Hence, an analysis of hotspot mutations of the different evolving virus strains needs to be carried out. In this regard, multiple sequence alignment of 71,038 SARS-CoV-2 genomes of 98 countries over the period from January 2020 to June 2021 is performed using MAFFT followed by phylogenetic analysis in order to visualize the virus evolution. These steps resulted in the identification of hotspot mutations as deletions and substitutions in the coding regions based on entropy greater than or equal to 0.3, leading to a total of 45 unique hotspot mutations. Moreover, 10,286 Indian sequences are considered from 71,038 global SARS-CoV-2 sequences as a demonstrative example that gives 52 unique hotspot mutations. Furthermore, the evolution of the hotspot mutations along with the mutations in variants of concern is visualized, and their characteristics are discussed as well. Also, for all the non-synonymous substitutions (missense mutations), the functional consequences of amino acid changes in the respective protein structures are calculated using PolyPhen-2 and I-Mutant 2.0. In addition to this, SSIPe is used to report the binding affinity between the receptor-binding domain of Spike protein and human ACE2 protein by considering L452R, T478K, E484Q, and N501Y hotspot mutations in that region.

Characterization of altered genomic landscape of SARS-CoV-2 variants isolated in Saudi Arabia in a comparative in silico study

SARS-CoV-2 has become one of the unprecedented global health challenge for human population. Genomic signature studies of SARS-CoV-2 reveals relation between geographical location of the isolates and genetic diversity. The present work is an in silico, cross sectional study aimed to determine the genetic heterogeneity of SARS-CoV-2 variants isolated in Saudi Arabia compared to the first isolated strain NC_045512 (reference sequence). Each sequence was aligned against the reference sequence using local alignment search tool (NCBI) Nucleotide-BLAST. A total of 58 SARS-CoV-2 genomes were isolated in KSA and retrieved from NCBI. Our study shows that KSA variants demonstrated homology ranging between 99.96 and 99.98 % compared to the reference strain. There are 89 nucleotide changes that have been identified among the KSA variants; the most common nucleotide change was C: T accounting for 50.6% (45/89). These nucleotides changes resulted in 53.9% (48/89) missense mutations and 42.7% (38/89) silent mutations; while the majority of mutations- 48.3% (43/89) occurred in ORF1ab gene. All structural genes displayed mutations; N gene harbored 16.9% (15/89) mutations, S gene displayed 15.7% (14/89) mutations, M gene exhibited 2.2% (2/89) mutations and E gene showed only 1 mutation which was silent. The most frequently changed nucleotide was C3037T (silent mutation) and A23403G (D614G), each of which occurred in 57 variants out of 58 followed by C14408T (P4715L) and C241T (5'UTR) which were found in 56 and 55 variants respectively. The Phylogenetic trees showed that SARS-CoV-2 variants isolated in Saudi Arabia clustered together closely.

Recent omics-based computational methods for COVID-19 drug discovery and repurposing

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), is the main reason for the increasing number of deaths worldwide. Although strict quarantine measures were followed in many countries, the disease situation is still intractable. Thus, it is needed to utilize all possible means to confront this pandemic. Therefore, researchers are in a race against the time to produce potential treatments to cure or reduce the increasing infections of COVID-19. Computational methods are widely proving rapid successes in biological related problems, including diagnosis and treatment of diseases. Many efforts in recent months utilized Artificial Intelligence (AI) techniques in the context of fighting the spread of COVID-19. Providing periodic reviews and discussions of recent efforts saves the time of researchers and helps to link their endeavors for a faster and efficient confrontation of the pandemic. In this review, we discuss the recent promising studies that used Omics-based data and utilized AI algorithms and other computational tools to achieve this goal. We review the established datasets and the developed methods that were basically directed to new or repurposed drugs, vaccinations and diagnosis. The tools and methods varied depending on the level of details in the available information such as structures, sequences or metabolic data.

Peptide-Based Inhibitors for SARS-CoV-2 and SARS-CoV

The COVID‐19 (coronavirus disease) global pandemic, caused by the spread of the SARS‐CoV‐2 (severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2) virus, currently has limited treatment options which include vaccines, anti‐virals, and repurposed therapeutics. With their high specificity, tunability, and biocompatibility, small molecules like peptides are positioned to act as key players in combating SARS‐CoV‐2, and can be readily modified to match viral mutation rate. A recent expansion of the understanding of the viral structure and entry mechanisms has led to the proliferation of therapeutic viral entry inhibitors. In this comprehensive review, inhibitors of SARS and SARS‐CoV‐2 are investigated and discussed based on therapeutic design, inhibitory mechanistic approaches, and common targets. Peptide therapeutics are highlighted, which have demonstrated in vitro or in vivo efficacy, discuss advantages of peptide therapeutics, and common strategies in identifying targets for viral inhibition.

Perception of health and educational risks amongst dental students and educators in the era of COVID-19

OBJECTIVE

To investigate the perceived educational and health risks associated with the COVID-19 pandemic amongst dental students and educators.

METHODS

A 17-item electronic survey was sent to 496 undergraduate dental students and 53 clinical faculty members who attended clinical sessions during the outbreak period. The survey explored various aspects related to primary sources and prevention of disease exposure, dental management of suspected cases, impact of COVID-19 on students' clinical performance and effects of suspension of educational activities on academic performance and clinical competence.

RESULTS

The response rate of the students' was 60.7% (n = 301). The majority of students reported that performing clinical work during the outbreak posed significant health concerns, resulted in a significant stress and negatively affected their clinical performance. The majority of students believed that aerosols generated during dental procedures are the major source for disease exposure and universal protective equipment is not effective for prevention. The decision to suspend teaching activities was supported by 89% of the students. Opinions were divided regarding the impact of the suspension on the academic performance and clinical competence. Educational videos were the most preferred form of distance education. The response rate of faculty members was 60.4% (n = 32). Responses of faculty members were similar to students, though fewer concerns were reported regarding the risk of disease transmission. All respondents agreed that extra-precautionary measures are required to ensure optimum protection against disease exposure.

CONCLUSIONS

The recent COVID-19 outbreak has adversely affected various elements of dental education. High levels of major health risk perception were noted amongst students and educators. The interruption to academic and clinical activities may lead to an inevitable skill deficit within the new generation of dental graduates. Educators are under significant pressure to accommodate abrupt changes in teaching methods, find solutions to mitigate skill deficit and ensure safe clinical practice once clinical activities are resumed.

A study on non-synonymous mutational patterns in structural proteins of SARS-CoV-2

SARS-CoV-2 is mutating and creating divergent variants across the world. An in-depth investigation of the amino acid substitutions in the genomic signature of SARS-CoV-2 proteins is highly essential for understanding its host adaptation and infection biology. A total of 9587 SARS-CoV-2 structural protein sequences collected from 49 different countries are used to characterize protein-wise variants, substitution patterns (type and location), and major substitution changes. The majority of the substitutions are distinct, mostly in a particular location, and lead to a change in an amino acid's biochemical properties. In terms of mutational changes, envelope (E) and membrane (M) proteins are relatively more stable than nucleocapsid (N) and spike (S) proteins. Several co-occurrence substitutions are observed, particularly in S and N proteins. Substitution specific to active sub-domains reveals that heptapeptide repeat, fusion peptides, transmembrane in S protein, and N-terminal and C-terminal domains in the N protein are remarkably mutated. We also observe a few deleterious mutations in the above domains. The overall study on non-synonymous mutation in structural proteins of SARS-CoV-2 at the start of the pandemic indicates a diversity amongst virus sequences.

Perspectives About Modulating Host Immune System in Targeting SARS-CoV-2 in India

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2), the causative agent of coronavirus induced disease-2019 (COVID-19), is a type of common cold virus responsible for a global pandemic which requires immediate measures for its containment. India has the world's largest population aged between 10 and 40 years. At the same time, India has a large number of individuals with diabetes, hypertension and kidney diseases, who are at a high risk of developing COVID-19. A vaccine against the SARS-CoV-2, may offer immediate protection from the causative agent of COVID-19, however, the protective memory may be short-lived. Even if vaccination is broadly successful in the world, India has a large and diverse population with over one-third being below the poverty line. Therefore, the success of a vaccine, even when one becomes available, is uncertain, making it necessary to focus on alternate approaches of tackling the disease. In this review, we discuss the differences in COVID-19 death/infection ratio between urban and rural India; and the probable role of the immune system, co-morbidities and associated nutritional status in dictating the death rate of COVID-19 patients in rural and urban India. Also, we focus on strategies for developing masks, vaccines, diagnostics and the role of drugs targeting host-virus protein-protein interactions in enhancing host immunity. We also discuss India's strengths including the resources of medicinal plants, good food habits and the role of information technology in combating COVID-19. We focus on the Government of India's measures and strategies for creating awareness in the containment of COVID-19 infection across the country.

Review on COVID-19 Etiopathogenesis, Clinical Presentation and Treatment Available with Emphasis on ACE2

In December 2019, Wuhan city in the Hubei province of China reported for the first time a cluster of patients infected with a novel coronavirus, since then there has been an outburst of this disease across the globe affecting millions of human inhabitants. Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus type-2 (SARS-CoV-2), is a member of beta coronavirus family which upon exposure caused a highly infectious disease called novel coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19). COVID-19, a probably bat originated disease was declared by World Health Organization (WHO) as a global pandemic in March 2020. Since then, despite rigorous global containment and quarantine efforts, the disease has affected nearly 56,261,952 laboratory confirmed human population and caused deaths of over 1,349,506 lives worldwide. Virus passes in majority through respiratory droplets and then enters lung epithelial cells by binding to angiotensin converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) receptor and there it undergoes replication and targeting host cells causing severe pathogenesis. Majority of human population exposed to SARS-CoV-2 having fully functional immune system undergo asymptomatic infection while 5-10% are symptomatic and only 1-2% are critically affected and requires ventilation support. Older people or people with co-morbidities are severely affected by COVID-19. These categories of patients also display cytokine storm due to dysfunctional immune response which brutally destroys the affected organs and may lead to death in some. Real time PCR is still considered as standard method of diagnosis along with other serology, radiological and biochemical investigations. Till date, no specific validated medication is available for the treatment of COVID-19 patients. Thus, this review provides detailed knowledge about the different landscapes of disease incidence, etiopathogenesis, involvement of various organs, diagnostic criteria's and treatment guidelines followed for management of COVID-19 infection since its inception. In conclusion, extensive research to recognize novel pathways and their cross talk to combat this virus in precarious settings is our future positive hope.

Comparative insight into the genomic landscape of SARS-CoV-2 and identification of mutations associated with the origin of infection and diversity

The analyses of 2325 severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) genomes revealed 107, 162, and 65 nucleotide substitutions in the coding region of SARS-CoV-2 from the three continents America, Europe, and Asia, respectively. Of these nucleotide substitutions 58, 94, and 37 were nonsynonymous types mostly present in the Nsp2, Nsp3, Spike, and ORF9. A continent-specific phylogram analyses clustered the SARS-CoV-2 in the different group based on the frequency of nucleotide substitutions. Detailed analyses about the continent-specific amino acid changes and their effectiveness by SNAP2 software was investigated. We found 11 common nonsynonymous mutations; among them, two novel effective mutations were identified in ORF9 (S194L and S202N). Intriguingly, ORF9 encodes nucleocapsid phosphoprotein possessing many effective mutations across continents and could be a potential candidate after the spike protein for studying the role of mutation in viral assembly and pathogenesis. Among the two forms of certain frequent mutation, one form is more prevalent in Europe continents (Nsp12:L314, Nsp13:P504, Nsp13:Y541, Spike:G614, and ORF8:L84) while other forms are more prevalent in American (Nsp12:P314, Nsp13:L504, Nsp13:C541, Spike:D614, and ORF8:L84) and Asian continents (Spike:D614), indicating the spatial and temporal dynamics of SARS-CoV-2. We identified highly conserved 38 regions and among these regions, 11 siRNAs were predicted on stringent criteria that can be used to suppress the expression of viral genes and the corresponding reduction of human viral infections. The present investigation provides information on different mutations and will pave the way for differentiating strains based on virulence and their use in the development of better antiviral therapy.

Diagnostic techniques for COVID-19 and new developments

COVID-19 pandemic is a serious global health issue today due to the rapid human to human transmission of SARS-CoV-2, a new type of coronavirus that causes fatal pneumonia. SARS -CoV-2 has a faster rate of transmission than other coronaviruses such as SARS and MERS and until now there are no approved specific drugs or vaccines for treatment. Thus, early diagnosis is crucial to prevent the extensive spread of the disease. The reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) is the most routinely used method until now to detect SARS-CoV-2 infections. However, several other faster and accurate assays are being developed for the diagnosis of COVID-19 aiming to control the spread of infection through the identification of patients and immediate isolation. In this review, we will discuss the various detection methods of the SARS-CoV-2 virus including the recent developments in immunological assays, amplification techniques as well as biosensors.

Feline infectious peritonitis (FIP) and coronavirus disease 19 (COVID-19): Are they similar?

SARS‐CoV‐2 has radically changed our lives causing hundreds of thousands of victims worldwide and influencing our lifestyle and habits. Feline infectious peritonitis (FIP) is a disease of felids caused by the feline coronaviruses (FCoV). FIP has been considered irremediably deadly until the last few years. Being one of the numerous coronaviruses that are well known in veterinary medicine, information on FCoV could be of interest and might give suggestions on pathogenic aspects of SARS‐CoV‐2 that are still unclear. The authors of this paper describe the most important aspects of FIP and COVID‐19 and the similarities and differences between these important diseases. SARS‐CoV‐2 and FCoV are taxonomically distant viruses, and recombination events with other coronaviruses have been reported for FCoV and have been suggested for SARS‐CoV‐2. SARS‐CoV‐2 and FCoV differ in terms of some pathogenic, clinical and pathological features. However, some of the pathogenic and immunopathogenic events that are well known in cats FIP seem to be present also in people with COVID‐19. Moreover, preventive measures currently recommended to prevent SARS‐CoV‐2 spreading have been shown to allow eradication of FIP in feline households. Finally, one of the most promising therapeutic compounds against FIP, GS‐441524, is the active form of Remdesivir, which is being used as one therapeutic option for COVID‐19.

Genomic and proteomic mutation landscapes of SARS-CoV-2

The ongoing pandemic caused by a novel coronavirus, Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS‐CoV‐2), affects thousands of people every day worldwide. Hence, drugs and vaccines effective against all variants of SARS‐CoV‐2 are crucial today. Viral genome mutations exist commonly which may impact the encoded proteins, possibly resulting to varied effectivity of detection tools and disease treatment. Thus, this study surveyed the SARS‐CoV‐2 genome and proteome and evaluated its mutation characteristics. Phylogenetic analyses of SARS‐CoV‐2 genes and proteins show three major clades and one minor clade (P6810S; ORF1ab). The overall frequency and densities of mutations in the genes and proteins of SARS‐CoV‐2 were observed. Nucleocapsid exhibited the highest mutation density among the structural proteins while the spike D614G was the most common, occurring mostly in genomes outside China and United States. ORF8 protein had the highest mutation density across all geographical areas. Moreover, mutation hotspots neighboring and at the catalytic site of RNA‐dependent RNA polymerase were found that might challenge the binding and effectivity of remdesivir. Mutation coldspots may present as conserved diagnostic and therapeutic targets were found in ORF7b, ORF9b, and ORF14. These findings suggest that the virion's genotype and phenotype in a specific population should be considered in developing diagnostic tools and treatment options.

The Pathophysiology, Diagnosis and Treatment of Corona Virus Disease 2019 (COVID-19)

Since the beginning of this century, beta coronaviruses (CoV) have caused three zoonotic outbreaks. However, little is currently known about the biology of the newly emerged SARS-CoV-2 in late 2019. There is a spectrum of clinical features from mild to severe life threatening disease with major complications like severe pneumonia, acute respiratory distress syndrome, acute cardiac injury and septic shock. The genome of SARS-CoV-2 encodes polyproteins, four structural proteins and six accessory proteins. SARS-CoV-2 tends to utilize Angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) of various mammals. The imbalance between ACE/Ang II/AT1R pathway and ACE2/Ang(1-7)/Mas receptor pathway in the renin-angiotensin system leads to multi-system inflammation. The early symptoms of COVID-19 pneumonia are low to midgrade fever, dry cough and fatigue. Vigilant screening is important. The diagnosis of COVID-19 should be based on imaging findings along with epidemiological history and nucleic acid detection. Isolation and quarantine of suspected cases is recommended. Management is primarily supportive, with newer antiviral drugs/vaccines under investigation.

Risk for dental healthcare professionals during the COVID-19 global pandemic: An evidence-based assessment

OBJECTIVES

Heightened anxiety among dental healthcare professionals (DHPs) during the COVID-19 pandemic stems from uncertainties about the effectiveness of personal protective equipment (PPE) against dental aerosols and risk levels of asymptomatic patients. Our objective was to assess the risks for DHPs providing dental care during the pandemic based on available scientific evidence.

METHODS

We reviewed the best available evidence and estimated the annualized risk (p=das(1-1-p0p1(1-e)yn) for a DHP during the COVID-19 pandemic based on the following basic parameters: p0, the prevalence of asymptomatic patients in the local population; p1, the probability that a DHP gets infected by an asymptomatic patient; e, the effectiveness of the PPE; s, the probability of becoming symptomatic after getting infected from asymptomatic patient; da, the probability of dying from the disease in age group a; n, number of patients seen per day; and y, number of days worked per year.

RESULTS

With the assumption that DHPs work fulltime and wear a N95 mask, the annualized probability for a DHP to acquire COVID-19 infection in a dental office, become symptomatic, and die from the infection is estimated at 1:13,000 (0.008 %) in a medium sized city in the US at the peak of the pandemic. The risk estimate is highly age-dependent. Risk to DHPs under the age of 70 is negligible when prevalence of asymptomatic cases is low in the local community.

CONCLUSIONS

Risk of COVID-19 transmission in dental office is very low based on available evidence on effectiveness of PPE and prevalence of asymptomatic patients. Face shields and pre-procedure oral rinses may further reduce the risks.

CLINICAL SIGNIFICANCE

DHPs should follow guidelines on pre-appointment protocols and on PPE use during dental treatments to keep the risk low.

Update of the current knowledge on genetics, evolution, immunopathogenesis, and transmission for coronavirus disease 19 (COVID-19)

In December 2019, an acute respiratory disease caused by novel species of coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2), emerged in China and has spread throughout the world. On 11th March 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) officially declared coronavirus disease 19 (COVID-19) a pandemic, severe coronavirus-mediated human disease. Based on genomic and phylogenetic studies, SARS-CoV-2 might originate from bat coronaviruses and infects humans directly or through intermediate zoonotic hosts. However, the exact origin or the host intermediate remains unknown. Genetically, SARS-CoV-2 is similar to several existing coronaviruses, particularly SARS-CoV, but differs by silent and non-silent mutations. The virus uses different transmission routes and targets cells and tissues with angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) protein, which makes it contagious. COVID-19 shares both the main clinical features and excessive/dysregulated cell responses with the two previous Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS) and severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS) epidemics. In this review, we provide an update of the current knowledge on the COVID-19 pandemic. Gaining a deeper understanding of SARS-CoV-2 structure, transmission routes, and molecular responses, will assist in the prevention and control of COVID-19 outbreaks in the future.

SARS-CoV-2 recurrent RNA positivity after recovering from coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19): a meta-analysis

BACKGROUND AND AIM

Isolation of subjects with active severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection is a pivotal preventive measure in the ongoing coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. A growing number of studies reported cases of recurrent SARS-CoV-2 RNA positivity following disease recovery, which were identified with a critical literature search and then meta-analyzed in this article.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

A digital search was performed in Medline and Web of Science, using the keywords "coronavirus disease 2019" OR "COVID-19" OR "severe acute respiratory disease 2" OR "SARS-CoV-2" AND "recurrence" OR "repositivization" OR "retesting", without date or language restrictions. Recovery was defined as resolution of symptoms, with at least two consecutive negative molecular tests.

RESULTS

A total number of 17 studies, with 5,182 COVID-19 patients, were included. SARS-CoV-2 recurrent RNA positivity in recovered COVID-19 patients ranged between 7-23% across the studies, with follow-up testing between 1-60 days. The estimated cumulative rate of SARS-CoV-2 recurrent RNA positivity was 12% (95% confidence interval, 12-13%; I2, 74%).

CONCLUSIONS

Repeated molecular testing on respiratory tracts specimens at 1 and 2 months after recovery from COVID-19 is strongly advisable for early identification, isolation and clinical management of subjects with SARS-CoV-2 recurrent RNA positivity.

Innovative diagnostic approach and investigation trends in COVID19-A systematic review

A highly contagious viral infection emerged in Wuhan city; China had increased mortality with uncertain pathogenesis spreads throughout the world to become a pandemic. It is reported to be caused by a member of β coronaviruses and named it as COVID-19 by the World Health Organization (WHO). The disease is caused by a mutant strain of coronavirus SARS-COV-2 that affects the respiratory tract causing mild to severe respiratory tract illness. The clinical manifestation ranges from mild, moderate, severe and very severe signs and symptoms result in death due to severe hypoxia or multi-organ dysfunction. Also, the affected persons were capable of infecting others through various modes of transmission through respiratory droplets (aerosol spread). A definite investigation protocol has followed to diagnose COVID 19 disease but mainly confirmed with reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction. Computerized tomography scan plays a significant role in the diagnosis and prognosis of affected individuals. The major problem with COVID-19 is due to its novelty and lack of vaccination or treatment. This review focuses on the mutation, pathogenesis, various diagnostic tests adopted and autopsy findings in patients affected with COVID-19.